Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
Chapter 6
Nanobiotechnology Strategies for Delivery
of Antimicrobials in Agriculture and Food
Adriano Brandelli
Abstract The great advances in nanotechnology and materials science point to an
important increase in the application of nanomaterials in agriculture and allied
sciences in the next future. Microbial spoilage of crops and foods is associated with
huge economical loses, and the utilization of nanoformulated antimicrobial sub-
stances arises as an interesting alternative to confront the damage caused by such
microorganisms. Antimicrobial nanoparticles can find several applications in agri-
culture and food packaging, and the effectiveness of metallic nanoparticles includ-
ing silver, nickel, iron, and zinc oxides has been demonstrated in many systems.
Also, the entrapment of antimicrobial substances in different nanostructures may
represent an alternative for delivery of these compounds. A diversity of
nanovesicles has been developed for encapsulation of antimicrobial substances,
including both natural and synthetic polymers as encapsulating material.
Nanofibers may be interesting nanostructures for antimicrobial delivery, allowing
different physical modes of antimicrobial loading, including direct adsorption on
the nanofiber surface or the assembly of drug-loaded nanoparticles. Magnetic
nanoparticles and nanotubes are also structures with potential application for
entrapment of antimicrobials. This chapter presents the most important
nanostructures as promising tools for antimicrobial delivery systems in agricultural
and food applications.
6.1
Introduction
Contemporary technologies, such as biotechnology and nanotechnology, can play
important role in agriculture by increasing production and improving the quality of
crops and foods. In particular, nanotechnology is a quite novel technology that has
the potential to create enormous changes in food and agricultural systems (Chen
